If Thursday’s report from SI.com is true and Petty Enterprises is all but done as a viable NASCAR entity — and given the season-long drumbeat of merger rumors and increasingly bad economic news, it’s difficult to imagine it’s not — well, that just sucks. While the name, iconic to the nth degree, will likely be retained in some form or fashion, the underlying truth is, this is the end of the line for a family that defines NASCAR and helped make it the cultural touchstone it is.